Tinanong namin ang ilan sa mga Beamers what it’s like to live in each of their hometowns — from their simple experiences to the memories they cherish the most. Ito ang kwento ni Raizza, Tom, Angela, at Shelly.

Raizza, Bicol

Raizza is from Albay, Bicol, home of the infamous Mayon Volcano. The last time she’s been there was a year ago, October 2016. Swerte raw kapag nakikita mo ang Mayon ng buo. Kadalasan kasi, natatakpan ito ng mga ulap. Fortunately, Raizza always gets to see Mayon’s true beauty every time she visits.

For someone who spends so much time in the city, Raizza enjoys the slow pace in Bicol — yung feeling na hindi nagmamadali o minamadali. She says it makes one appreciate the little things that go by your day even more. Here’s how she describes coming back to her hometown of Albay:

After breakfast, I’d usually have somewhere to be in the city. Either bibisita ako ng mga friends ko from childhood or iikot lang ako para magliwaliw. Ang masaya diyan is there’s barely any traffic. I prefer going around the area via tricycle or jeep.

We also asked her what she misses the most. Sabi niya, it’s being around with her grandparents. Besides the satisfaction of having her favorite people around, the calmness and serenity of the environment. Fresh na fresh and hangin at hindi masyadong mainit dahil sagana ang mga pananim at puno sa paligid, as she would say.

Tom, Iloilo

Tom is from Jaro, Iloilo City. Ang huli niyang punta doon ay noong May 2016. Iloilo is known for it’s virgin beaches, batchoy, heritage sites, and modern jeepneys that roam around the city. Coming back to his hometown always excites him. And whenever he does, he makes sure to spend a lot of time with his family and friends.

“Every time I visit Iloilo, I always make sure that I’m doing something each day. In the morning, Its either I try new restaurants, maybe visit the beaches or maybe just chill outside my home and enjoy the fresh air. At night, we go out and drink because the night life scene in Iloilo’s crazy.”

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Tom remembers how delicious the food is in his hometown, especially the seafood. He even says, “you can never go wrong with the seafood in Iloilo. They’re huge and you can get them for a very cheap price.”

Angela, Negros Occidental

Angela was born in Escalante City, Negros Occidental. The last time she visited was three years ago before she entered college. The province of Negros is quite known for their festivals: Pintaflores at San Carlos City, Panaad and Masskara at Bacolod, Manlambus Festival sa Escalante City, and a lot more.

Shelly, Davao

Shelly at GMall, Davao City

Shelly is a proud Davaoeña. Her hometown is in Davao City, a coastal commercial center near Mt. Apo, the Philippine’s highest peak. It is also notably famous for Philippine Eagle and a place where you can get a lot of fruits and crops. Shelly tells us that aside from the numerous beaches and resorts, maraming mall sa Davao: Abreeza Ayala, SM, NCCC and the famous GMall. We also asked Shelly how it’s like in living in her hometown. Ito ang sinabi niya:

“Waking up in the Land of Promise is a great feeling. You are truly home safe with the people you spend everyday with. You can just go around and plan what you need to do for the day without worrying too much because the city has friendly beautiful men and women who love peace.

A typical day for me would be waking up with my coffee, doing routines at home, going to the mall. I actually like going to GMall, the place has variety of items from their supermarkets, food chains, to department stores. It’s a one-stop shop. And this mall really has a lot of affordable things to offer. Jeepneys pass by the mall making it convenient for commuters and shoppers. Taxis are everywhere too. It’s amazing to be here and every place is definitely accessible in the city.

Sleeping at night is one of my favorite things. Karaoke is limited to 10 PM so you can sleep soundly, hearing the chirping birds and animal friends in the background. And yes, I am living in an urban city but I can still feel like I’m in the countryside too. That is what most of us desire, I guess.”

Shelly misses the peaceful environment in Davao the most — how people treat you kindly, how they follow rules, and the lovely weather to match.

Ito ang mga namimiss nila sa mga lugar na kanilang kinalakihan. It’s such a good feeling to look back on those moments and places that have significant places in our hearts. And just because we don’t come back regularly, doesn’t mean we can’t show the people we miss how much we care for them. Sending Supermarket GCs using BeamAndGo is one of the ways to do so. Kahit saan pa man ang hometown mo, siguradong may option ka dito!

Branches: GMall has branches in Davao, Tagum, Toril, Gensan, at Digos. List of branches, store hours, and addresses can be accessed here.

Review: Davao OFWs are one of the most resilient, honest, and respectful Filipinos. We asked our members in Davao which supermarket chain they prefer, and unanimously, they picked G Mall. There’s no need to wait because G Mall is now part of the Beamer family.

We recently talked about domestic workers in Singapore now having a minimum salary of SGD 550. That’s a good thing, of course but too many of us don’t know what to do with even an extra SGD 50 or SGD 100. Meron pa nga diyang nakapulot lang ng Php 20, di na alam ang gagawin.

The main idea is this: Continue to live like you were still earning your old salary. Yes, treat yourself to something good or special. Movies are expensive in Singapore so you may want to choose that. Have a nice pepper or salted egg crab dinner with cereal prawn and some satay on the side. What about a day in Sentosa, Jurong Bird Park, Singapore Zoo, or Universal Studios? You deserve that.

However, after the little treat to yourself, go back to living frugally. This is actually your best chance to save. You do this effectively by revising that budget you started making as suggested in a previous blog post. (Find it here.) Don’t think about this money as a bonus. Think of it as an opportunity.

An opportunity for what? Marami.

There are many choices but here are some:

1) Send at least 30% of that extra to your mother and father. If you are now getting SGD 100 more, 30% is SGD 30 or Php 1,000. That’s Php 12,000 for a whole year! Hindi na masama iyon. To make things more secure, go to BeamAndGo.com and send them a gift pack they didn’t expect. Next is to make this a regular thing they can count on month on month. Get started here.

2) Put at least 30% in the bank. If you don’t have a bank account yet, open one but take note of the minimum monthly balance. DBS, POSB and OCBC are excellent banks and though SGD 30 may not seem much now but when you have SGD 360 more in your account at the end of the year, that’s definitely something to smile about. Be careful with the minimum maintaining balance. For example, you may need to have at least SGD 1000 in your account every monthly. If you can’t maintain that amount, you may get hit with a penalty resulting in your losing money little by little.

3) What about the remaining 40%? Find an investment plan. The banks in Singapore or the local insurance companies in the Philippines offer various investment products. The younger you are, the better to start because the benefits are bigger for much less money.

That 40% not enough for an investment plan you want? You can also redirect a little from your present budget to get that investment plan. Don’t think about this will result in more money leaving your pocket now. It will be a better future for you if you invest while you can.

4) One other option is just splitting the extra funds into half or a 40%-60% split. One part for your parents and one part for your investment into the future.

5) Look into medical insurance for your parents or your kids. There are different options, of course, but consult with your family doctor to determine what is the minimum needed. Need some options? You have PhilCare and Standard Insurance to choose from. Try looking here.

Also, make sure they are already enrolled properly with PhilHealth.

6) Send your parents or your spouse and kids a goody bag using BeamAndGo. Yes, you can’t go to the supermarket with them but with a BeamAndGo digital gift certificates (GC), it’s almost the same thing. Have you gone to Gaisano Mall or Iloilo Supermart with them? Get a GC at one of the participating supermarkets and make sure to have them send you photos. It’s not only for memories, it’s also a way to bond with them. Do that here.

Mag-shopping na para kina Tatay at Nanay!

The bottom line here is that regardless of how much money you make, you really have to have a budget and you need to stick to that budget. Though you should be happy with this new reported increase, you should also realise that on the whole, it’s not a whole lot of money and you have to make the best use of it as possible.

Many times, helping your family with the everyday necessities is part of what you can do best. BeamAndGo makes that happen and you start doing that by clicking here.

Your first and truest ally

Face it: When things get really difficult at work or when the people you live with prove more challenging than usual, you will normally grab your phone to have even a short talk with your mother. It’s normally just an issue of how much money you have set aside for making calls. Thank goodness for things like Facebook, WhatsApp, Skype, and Viber.

When I was still an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) in Singapore, I was one of the musicians in my church. In one Mass for Filipinos, the priest focused on how each and every one of us there owed so much to our mothers. Hit with some inspiration, I began playing the notes of “Sa Ugoy ng Duyan” on the piano. When I glanced at the congregation, hardly any person there, male or female, had dry eyes.

Why does any discussion on mothers cause such a reaction? For starters, a mother is always a person’s first supporter, the first fan. If you think about it, the mother is also the first real friend and chat mate with some mothers talking to their children as early as the pregnancy stage. Many of us have the experience of our mothers knowing something was up even before we knew about it or had the gumption to talk about it.

For example, when I was seven years old, I came home and my mom just looked at me. “May lagnat ka.” I gave this quizzical look and said, “Ha?” True enough, I was running a fever even though I didn’t feel it yet.

That’s how moms are and this is one reason why we can’t hide much from them and why our mothers are normally our first and truest allies.

This is why each OFW will always have this nagging question: How is my my mom? Is she okay?

Remember the times when you were too tired that she carried you?

This question is made stronger every time an OFW comes home only to leave for work again. You just can’t get rid of that feeling that maybe just so you don’t worry about her, your mother is not telling you everything she actually needs.

This is one of the reasons why BeamAndGo came to be. Each OFW wants a good measure of assurance that things are okay back home. You’re like that, aren’t you?

The surprise and the usual

Giving your mother chocolates is a good thing. So is giving her a bag of groceries. Mothers love that their little baby is able to earn a living, live a life independently, and send a goody or two back home one in a while. She won’t tell you though. You just see the twinkle in her eye and perhaps the hastily-brushed-off tear.

With BeamAndGo, you can actually do this much more easily and more frequently. For example, if you send her a BeamAndGo gift certificate of Php 1,000 (approximately SGD 30 or HKD 160), she can easily get perhaps the following items:

Adult milk (600g): Php 270

Sugar-free Coffee (20 packs): Php 106

Crackers (850g): Php 147

Dried Mangoes (100g): Php 50

5 cups of instant noodles (35g): Php 79

Spaghetti (450g): Php 36

Sweet Spaghetti Sauce (25kg): Php 22

Cooking oil (1L): Php 170

High Fiber bread loaf: Php 90

Cheddar cheese: Php 45

Halina. Bili na!

What’s even better is that BeamAndGo’s partner merchants offer better value than leading supermarkets. These merchants are your “neighborhood” groceries such as Gaisano Mall of Davao (Davao), Gaisano Capital (Cebu), or Iloilo Supermart (Iloilo). Knowing these guys are also on your side can truly give a whole new and meaningful importance to your hard-earned money.

She was your first companion and lakwatsa buddy.

When you miss your mother, maybe, instead of going out with some friends to burn that SGD 30 or HKD 160, you can just go to the BeamAndGo website and send your mom something that she appreciate.

What we have above most likely won’t last a month but think of it as something like your way of giving back to mom for all the times she didn’t have a lot of money but spent it on one slice of 3M Pizza or a Burger Machine cheeseburger and a bottle of Coke just so her little baby could have something to eat after a tiring day in school.

Yes, that’s your mom, nanay, mama, nanang, inay, ima, mudra. Why don’t you give her a call now and tell her something is on the way to make her smile?

Group picture of BeamAndGo and the Cartera family taken immediately after Ben shared his miraculous 34-year OFW story as a seaman.

The heritage rich city of Iloilo is located in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. Known for its “oohhh sooo yummy” Biscocho Haus Butterscotch and Chinese inspired Molo Soup, the city is also littered with traditional catholic churches dating back from the Spanish colonial era.

While much of its rich tradition has been kept preserved, the BeamAndGo team witnessed firsthand the city’s lightning speed infrastructure makeover with the acclaimed Iloilo International Airport and the Sta. Barbara Highway.

The very moment we hit the road from the airport, we were absolutely dumbfounded when we passed by the bustling 6-lane diversion highway on our way to the residence of one of our very own and Iloilo native, Vanessa Cartera, Director of Sales at BeamAndGo.

Vanessa, who hails from Iloilo and comes from a family of seamen, said it concisely: “Hindi dati ganito ang Iloilo. Times are changing. And I’m proud to be an Ilonggo.”

If you are wondering, BeamAndGo was one of 90 companies that participated at the PESO Office Mega Christmas Job Fair attended by 1,500 Ilonggos.

BeamAndGo poses with Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Sr. and the PESO Office department. The province of Iloilo has long been known to be the world’s resource for seamen and nurses.

In recent years, the BPO industry has spurred growth in local employment. But this city is where the world gets its pool of seamen and nursing professionals. This is the reason why Governor Arthur Defensor Sr., and his PESO office team invited us to orient jobseekers about what we do for OFWs and encourage them to register here for an account even before they set off for international placements.

But the best part of this trip is the story of Vanessa’s father Ben Cartera, a retired seaman who has had stints in Abu Dhabi, Sweden, and Norway. In his heyday, Ben told me his motivation was to build his dream house and provide education to his children.

After 34 years, he suffered a stroke that paralyzed half his body. It was painful for his family who depended on him for financial assistance. At that time, his daughter Vanessa was studying in a university in Metro Manila. She literally cut back on unnecessary expenses while the family dedicated most of their time to assist their ailing dad.

With tears in his eyes, Ben recounted the times he had to be away from his family during important celebrations such as Christmas and graduation. Thankfully, he has now recovered after years of rehabilitation and physical therapy to restore his facial and body movement. He credits his loving and supportive family who stood by him in his most difficult state.

While I was savoring the home-cooked Molo soup, I couldn’t help but cringe and imagine the thousands of Filipinos who have similar stories demonstrating the Filipino spirit of grit and determination to bounce back from tough times.

A hearty dinner with Cartera family at Tatoy’s, the pride of Iloilo.

From groceries and medicine to insurance and payments of bills, BeamAndGo aims to instill in the mindset of OFWs the importance of covering the basics first. We tell our BeamAndGo friends through our LearnAndGo Workshop Series and daily reminders that their hard-earned income should be spent on the things that matter – health, insurance, food, and education.

And what makes it better? Iloilo Supermart is now an official partner of BeamAndGo.com. Ilonggo OFWs can now purchase digital gift certificates that they can use to buy groceries and medicine from the said supermarket!

The Cartera family displayed to us the famous Filipino warmth and hospitality but it is their story that touches us the most. It serves as an inspiration for us at BeamAndGo to champion our cause to empower OFWs like you. We hope it would impact you the same way it made an impact on us.